A quirky island without any sea

Still, Jamaica is full of quirky surprises, and the wide spot in the road makes a nice diversion if you're heading to ski country. It's only about 10 minutes from Stratton Mountain, about 20 from Mount Snow.

Next to Town Hall, the 1830s building once used as a hospital has been reborn as Main Street Studio. Nancy Price opened the photography gallery a little over a year ago to represent about 15 artists, most of them local. Her husband, photographer Robert Reichert, maintains his studio in the chestnut-wood barn in the back. Reichert is known for his portraits of business executives, Nobel Prize winners, and gypsy dancers. He also welcomes walk-ins for a sitting in front of his Hasselblad -- if you have the time and $1,000. Price and Reichert relocated from Connecticut to Jamaica for a more laid-back lifestyle.

"Jamaica is the quintessential Vermont town that hasn't been tampered with," says Price. "That's why we chose it. If you removed the cars, it would look the same as it did 100 years ago."

A leisurely stroll proves her right. The boxy commercial buildings and farmhouses with long gallery porches haven't changed much from the 1906 photo on the village website. Many of these taciturn structures have attracted artists. You could spend an afternoon browsing and chatting and learning life stories. At the same time, you could buy the goods to furnish a rustic lodge or vacation retreat.

"This community grew up around artists and artisans," says Elaine Beckwith. Her eponymous fine art gallery and Price's bracket the commercial district. Beckwith displays the work of about 30 artists -- local, national, and international -- in her Victorian home. Her husband, Joel, works out of a printmaking studio on the grounds.

"He grew up in Concord, Mass.," she says, "but I convinced him that there was enough trout fishing to move up here."